as in brilliancy
the quality or state of having or giving off light
the brightness of the sunshine made me squint after an afternoon spent in a darkened movie theater
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of brightness
The original composition leaned toward brightness and energy, aligning with a period that favored clarity and freshness.
—
Maria Williams, USA Today, 7 Feb. 2026
The multi-wavelength light curves, like stock market graphs for a star's brightness, showed a clear sequence.
—Paul Sutter, Space.com, 6 Feb. 2026
This model uses smart tech to adjust the brightness of the display in a matter of seconds.
—Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 6 Feb. 2026
Even at their brightest, the other bright planets — including Jupiter and Mars — can’t compete with the brightness of Venus, even when Venus is at its faintest.
—Big Think, 5 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for brightness
Maria Williams, USA Today, 7 Feb. 2026
The multi-wavelength light curves, like stock market graphs for a star's brightness, showed a clear sequence.
—Paul Sutter, Space.com, 6 Feb. 2026
This model uses smart tech to adjust the brightness of the display in a matter of seconds.
—Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 6 Feb. 2026
Even at their brightest, the other bright planets — including Jupiter and Mars — can’t compete with the brightness of Venus, even when Venus is at its faintest.
—Big Think, 5 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for brightness
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brightness
Noun
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So, astronomers have come up with a compromise regarding the geometry of the sun's illumination angle on Venus' disk versus its distance from Earth to determine the time of Venus' greatest brilliancy.—
Joe Rao,
Space.com,
4 Apr. 2025
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Family circles will have wrapped themselves in the holy pleasures of the great occasion, and everywhere the grand old holiday will have been introduced with all the majesty and brilliancy which clings around the hallowed name of Christmas.—
Michael Barnes,
Austin American-Statesman,
23 Dec. 2024
Noun
-
Basketball brilliance turned this frigid afternoon into a hot Fudd Sunday.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
3 Feb. 2026
-
Melissa Ruggieri The emerging brilliance of Olivia Dean was not only recognized by Grammy voters, who awarded her best new artist, but by legendary music mogul Clive Davis.—
Melissa Ruggieri,
USA Today,
2 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Rather than allowing its typical lightness, Benning layers their brushstrokes purposefully so as to establish new kinds of relationships, both pictorial and material.—
Alex Bacon,
Artforum,
10 Feb. 2026
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Instead, there's a certain lightness to February's feels.—
Calin Van Paris,
InStyle,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Too bad Illinoisans will not join in the illuminations at home for our nation’s semiquincentennial — at least not legally.—
Brad Weisenstein,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Feb. 2026
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American Airlines said its pilots receive training on how to handle potential laser illumination incidents and are instructed to report any such events immediately.—
Kelly McGreal,
FOXNews.com,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The distances of Orion's belt stars range from 900 to 2,000 light-years from us, and shine with average luminosities roughly estimated to be more than 200,000 times that of our sun!—
Joe Rao,
Space.com,
8 Feb. 2026
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Back to the brightening qualities, Touche Éclat can also be used like a highlighter, adding luminosity to the high points of your face like the cheekbones and the bridge of the nose.—
Reece Andavolgyi,
InStyle,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Brightness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brightness. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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